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9/6/2012 4:52PM

Schumer: We Believe Govt. Can Help Middle Class

WSJ's Jerry Seib sat down with New York Senator Chuck Schumer to talk about President Barack Obama's speech, the impact of former President Bill Clinton's speech, and the economic message of the Democratic and Republican conventions.

This transcript has been automatically generated and may not be 100% accurate.

I ... son Jerry Sithe Berger Charlotte at the Democratic convention with Chuck Schumer seen the Senator from New York thanks very much for his again ... so last night we all watch the speech by Bill when I suspect will be talking about ... for years to come in with that in the moment ... tell me what you think it did for the party in terms of ... the people the hall and the message addressed ... well I think it was a great speech I think if every American soil that speech ... election would almost be over ... with the ease it laid out the predicate where we were four years ago where we are today ... they wanted to better ... the why it's taken so long to make it better still ... and it said ... it set it up for present Obama ... can now talk about the future ... which is very important as well in other words what he's going to do in the next four years ... to make things better for middle class people say what you mean is that I can think is that Barack Obama present Obama tonight does not have to spend so much time defeating Republican art ... you can start ... con's and at from and part of that and also ... he doesn't have to explain the pants Chris disappointed that we can focus on the future which is very very import wind project because the pass is not all pain free to correct ... exactly right ... um ... still the economic message is that these two conventions the Tampa Republican convention in Charlotte at six I think without a pretty ... if you step back a pretty interesting ... we have been the fact that Mitt Romney has embraced Ryan and the far right ... so called Tea Party wing of the party makes it pretty clear ... we believe that ... not all but a significant number of instances government can help the middle class of better lives and get out of this unrest ... they basically believe governments good for almost nothing maybe defense but not nothing else ... and that's a real contrast now I happen to think the average middle class person ... if that argument is drawn ... sharply sites with us they believe there should be ... more help for education in for infrastructure and for scientific research and things like that ... and here's why he is part of what I base that ... bill Clinton talked about ... seriously what we wanted to do was in in or what we had done ... in very real way so he talked about for NSN's Medicaid which is not the most popular agenda but he made it ... popular ... um ... they really didn't think and talk about what they really wanted to about Medicare they say they're saving Medicare ... that is not ... really quite tasty if your your annuity they didn't talk about vouchers write exactly and I use this debt that is where their platform is where Paul Ryan isn't window Mitt Romney as ... Palm ... they didn't talk about ... what they really wanted to one texts ... and twenty four he can talk about what they really believe in ... God and compare it to a party that can ... the forty they can always gets tripped up in ways we can predict but still get revved up for a forty five ways ... but times have between Alan November and ... last question the ... language about ... the shoot Jerusalem is the capital Mr. ... self-inflicted wound is an absolutely self-inflicted I don't think it was done on purpose I was involved pretty heavily in him on the phone ... in yet available in the aftermath he I was involved in the aftermath when I found out about it which was yesterday morning ... and I do believe that was a mistake of omission Opko missional wasn't that a group of people got together so we no longer believe this ... they just left it out now in all fairness ... um ... while that is my position and Democratic Party position has been I believe it's the presence or was the president ordered the platform change so ... um ... if you ask this Israeli government ... already Israeli government has been involved in this issue for the last twenty years what are your top five priorities this would not be on ... soda wasn't as if all of the most glaring thing was done ... the two biggest threats to Israel are random rockets and from Hezbollah ... the platform addresses both of those ... thanks for joining us that Okonjo document banks